Base Camp: Conservationist Ocean Ramsey Swims with Great White Sharks

I'm not a naturally fearless person. It's pretty simple: Some of us are born adrenaline junkies and some of us aren't. That doesn't mean I don't like a thrill—I've jumped off cliffs, shimmied into dark caves and snorkeled above some pretty big sharks. But let's make one thing very clear: if those sharks had started swimming my way, I'd have been out of the water faster than you could say "Holy murder fish."

Not so for Ocean Ramsey, the star of a new GoPro video that went viral around Valentine's Day. In the short clip titled "A Blonde and a Great White Shark," the freediver and stunningly beautiful model slips  into peaceful blue water in a shark cage as a calming tune lures you in. She then proceeds to swim out of the cage, approach a Great White shark and enjoy a ride latched onto the shark's dorsal fin. Let me repeat that: swims out of cage, grabs shark fin, goes for ride. (Watch the video after the jump)

Since February 14, the video has racked up over a million views on Youtube and Ramsey has become know as the "Shark Whisperer." But why do it in the first place? The goal of the video is to dispel the popular opinion that Great White sharks are bloodthirsty killers and spread awareness for shark conservation efforts. "In truth, sharks are intelligent, calculated and generally very cautious about approaching humans," Ramsey explains in a blog post about the video. "More importantly, sharks play a vital role in maintaining a healthy ocean ecosystem. Many people are unaware that sharks are being over-fished to the point of extinction."

I'll admit her cause is noble and she's definitely accomplished her goal of raising awareness for the sharks' plight, but was it worth the risk? No matter how calm and calculating a shark can be, it's still a wild animal, and I'm having flashbacks to bad episodes of When Animals Attack—it's not so rare that even animal behavior experts are attacked by the very animals they know so well. Don't get me wrong, I'm impressed by the gusty move, but I'm going to protect these animals from above the waterline. Or maybe that's just my wimp genes talking.

What do you think—crazy or caring?